


Thrill of the Fall

by stardropdream



Category: xxxHoLic
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-18
Updated: 2013-02-18
Packaged: 2017-11-29 18:39:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,374
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/690182
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stardropdream/pseuds/stardropdream
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A wedding day.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Thrill of the Fall

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted on LJ September 4, 2009.

The bride glided down the aisle, white dress tailored to fit her body perfectly. Long, black hair cascaded down her back, one thin veil draped over her head, shielding her smiling face from view. The guests watched her pass, arm looped through with her father’s as she moved up towards the altar, where the wedding party was waiting for her.   
  
She reached her destination, and her father’s arm left her side as he returned to his wife, smiling up at their daughter from the front pew. The bride smiled through her veil, looking to her side, facing what would undoubtedly be her future.   
  
The ceremony went smoothly, the only close call coming when one of the chandeliers hanging from the ceiling suddenly crashed, though thankfully only on the outskirts of the room, and no one was hurt. Patrons shrugged it off as poor maintenance of the church, but only one pair of eyes looked upward, cast a worried shadow across her expression, her smile fading away only slightly. Only two noticed such a look, and those two both moved closer to her, to reassure her.   
  
The rest of the service went on without a hitch, and the congregation rose to their feet as the newly wedded young ones rushed down the aisle, holding hands, towards an uncertain, but shining future. Guests mingled for half a moment, laughing and smiling, and in the case of some, wiping their eyes free of tears, before following after the newlyweds and towards the wedding reception.   
  
“They seem happy,” she said after a long moment, when the hall was empty, the last of the guests leaving the room, sans for those three. She let out a small sigh. “I’m glad.”   
  
“I guess we should head over to the reception—” one of the others said, before realizing that she was trailing away. “Hey…”   
  
She paused, where she surveyed the fallen chandelier. Shattered glass was scattered across the floor, a fragile metal carcass left to decay. She frowned, looking down at it, the little bird on her shoulder hopping closer to her ear to whistle a low tune.   
  
“Himawari-chan,” the one who’d spoken before called, hurrying over while shoving his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “Be careful, you’ll cut yourself.”  
  
The third one, who’d been silent up until that point, grasped the other boy’s shoulders and pulled. “Don’t run into glass, idiot.”  
  
“Don’t tell me what to do!” the other shouted.   
  
The girl turned away again, smile back firmly in place. She walked back over to the two of them, mindful not to let any glass kick up over the small sandals she wore.   
  
“I guess we should go to the reception now, huh?” she asked cheerfully enough.   
  
“There’ll be cake,” the tallest said and in his rather flat voice there was one thread of excitement there. And the angle of his lips shifted ever so slightly, to suggest a smile.   
  
“Is that all you can think about, you glutton?” the other boy shouted, clenching his fists.  
  
“I’m sure the cake will be really delicious, I’m excited to have some,” the girl said.  
  
“You’re absolutely right, Himawari-chan! We should hurry so you can get some,” he exclaimed, sparkles in his mismatched eyes, spinning around and practically sailing towards the door. The other two followed behind him. He grinned at her over his shoulder. “We better hurry so there’s some left.”  
  
“Wedding cakes are large,” the other boy said, and still sounded rather pleased, for him.   
  
“You shut up!”   
  
Himawari laughed and followed after them, shutting the door behind her and trying not to think of the fallen chandelier.   
  
  
\---  
  
  
A few hours later found the three sitting on the outskirts of the reception hall, sitting at a table and watching guests dancing together, the bride and groom at the center.   
  
“Thanks again for coming with me to this,” Himawari said, poking at her slice of wedding cake with her fork.   
  
“It was our pleasure, Himawari-chan! Thank you for inviting us!” Watanuki said, still sounding amazingly chipper and ecstatic to be anyway near Himawari—and undoubtedly in his head he was picturing images of her in a wedding gown, which nearly sent him into a coma from happiness.   
  
“Yeah,” was all Doumeki said, shoving the rest of his cake into his mouth and slyly reaching over with his fork to nab some of Watanuki’s.  
  
“HEY!” Watanuki shouted, noticing instantly and moving to stab Doumeki’s hand with his fork, wielding it like a dagger. Doumeki narrowly avoided such a mishap and Himawari laughed behind her hand.   
  
The room was filled with gentle music and couples glided across the floor, moving and swaying with the music.   
  
“Come to think of it,” Watanuki said, squinting through his eyes. “This is my first time going to a western style wedding.”  
  
“Do you like it?” Himawari asked.  
  
“It’s wonderful, especially since Himawari-chan is here!”   
  
Himawari smiled at him.   
  
“It’s nice…” Himawari mused quietly. “I don’t often go to things like this.”  
  
He must have heard something in her tone, because Watanuki’s eyebrows knitted together and he looked at her in concern and sympathy. “Himawari-chan…”  
  
Doumeki seized her hand and tugged. “Let’s dance.”  
  
“E-eh?” Himawari managed to stutter out in surprise as he pulled her away from the table and towards the dance floor.   
  
Watanuki was just as flabbergasted as Himawari, sputtering loudly. “YOU-! WHO DECIDED YOU COULD DO THAT!?”   
  
“I’ll dance with you next if you want,” Doumeki said with a deadpan, regarding Watanuki passively.   
  
Watanuki, as expected, spazzed out even more. “THAT’S NOT WHAT I MEANT!”   
  
But Doumeki was pulling Himawari away, leading her to the dance floor. She tugged on his hold on her wrist half-heartedly, cheeks turning pink.  
  
“Doumeki-kun…”   
  
“It’s okay,” he assured her, and placed a hand on her waist, without any hesitation. He slid his hand up and grasped hers, and then moved her across the floor. He didn’t seem to know the steps all that well, but he didn’t let it stop him, and he moved with more grace than Himawari expected, and she followed after him, blinking in surprise and then, after a long moment, laughing despite herself.   
  
“R-right…”   
  
“Relax,” he reminded her and she realized her shoulders were tensed.  
  
“I’m sorry…”  
  
“Don’t apologize,” Doumeki told her, and then pulled her arm, dropping the hand on her waist so that he could twirl her under his own arm, before drawing her back and sweeping her away.  
  
Himawari felt a small coil of tension ease out of her shoulder blades. She laughed again, and she heard Tanpopo chirp happily in her ear.   
  
Their dancing was interrupted after one song, however, when Doumeki, looking over Himawari’s shoulder, raised one eyebrow and dropped his hold on her hand. Before Himawari could question, Watanuki was there, red in the face, and grasping the hand recently vacated.   
  
“H-Himawari… chan…” Watanuki began and cleared his throat, face growing redder by the moment. “Would you like to dance with me?”   
  
Himawari let out a small ‘oh’ in surprise, glancing between the two of her companions, before her expression softened and she felt as if she were going to cry. The squeezing in her heart subsided enough for her to nod.   
  
“Yes.”   
  
Watanuki’s smile could have lit up the room, and he mimicked Doumeki’s earlier position (with a rather blatant bump from Watanuki’s hips against Doumeki, in an effort to shove the other boy away. Doumeki rolled his eyes and left to go and eat Watanuki’s unprotected cake.) Watanuki held her hands gently, but not with any hesitation, his hold much softer than Doumeki’s had been, but no less sincere. When Himawari looked at his face, he was smiling joyously at her.   
  
“I’m not very good at this…” he admitted. “But…”  
  
“I’m sure Watanuki-kun is very talented,” Himawari reassured and smiled silently when Watanuki puffed up proudly, face flushed in joy at her compliment.   
  
They danced, and Watanuki never stopped smiling at her. From their table, where he’d shoved a mouthful of Watanuki’s liberated cake into his mouth, Doumeki offered her a small curve of his lips that was only the slightest of smiles.   
  
The familiar urge to cry reclaimed its hold on her heart, but she resisted, and felt her lips wobble into a gentle smile.


End file.
